- B&O A1 3. Gen promise more bass in the same design
- Up to 24 hours of battery life and mating with other A1 models
- $ 349 / £ 299 is a price increase over the previous model
Bang & Olufsen has announced BeoSound A1 3. Gen, which is the new version of B & O’s Mid-Tier Portable Bluetooth speaker. The new model promises more powerful sound, a few new features and longer battery life and comes at a higher price than its predecessor, even before taking discounts on the old model.
I’ve been a fan of B&O A1 2. Gen since its release in 2020-It is the Bluetooth speaker I use at home, and I love it for its stylish aluminum design, more full sound than other medium-sized bluetooth speakers and generous battery life, which means it’s always ready to go, even if it’s forgotten in a season.
According to B&O, the A1 3 has “the biggest woofer in its class”, which means more powerful and “deeper” bass output (with an alleged bass SPL of 64DB, which is 2DB higher than the 2nd gen). This sounds good to me if you assume that it is well balanced with the middle and treble-as I mentioned above is the real trick of the B&O A1 2 that it managed a wider and more well-rounded sound than similar offers from JBL and Sonos.
The life of the battery has risen from 18 hours to 24 hours, which is really good for any of the best Bluetooth speakers, so much less a smaller option-even.
However, other upgrades than these are more subtle. The wireless connection is Bluetooth 5.1, which seems a bit behind the times -so many new Bluetooth speakers today arrive with newer versions that include Auracast Support for audio sharing across multiple speakers.
B&O has not gone for that kind of option, but it can be used in a stereopar with either another A1 3. Gen or an A1 2. Gen (I obviously have an eye on that feature …).
Alexa Voice Assistant -Support from 2nd Gen seems to be dropped, but there is still a microphone – you can use it as a speaker phone. You have Microsoft Swift pair and Google Fast Pair to easily connect to these devices.
The design looks pretty much unchanged from the previous model that is okay by me -I really like the ‘button’ shape and pure metal finish. It’s not as pocket as JBL -FLIP 7, but it is quite thin and can slip in a bag lightly enough.
As before, it comes with a strap attached and is IP67 classified so that it can stand up to a light dunking in water or roam between the sand as the best waterproof speakers.
B&O says this is also the first ever Bluetooth speaker that is “cradle to cradle certified (bronze level), which means it is made with sustainable practice in mind, and has modularity in the design that makes it repaired in the future -including a battery that can be replaced in a B&O service center.
There are three colors: natural aluminum, honey tone and eucalyptus green. I don’t like the latter as much as the beautiful Forest Green -Finish B&O used on A1 2. Gen and B&O Explore – which may be my favorite finish on any technical product ever – but it’s still very nice, just like honey tone.
The stumble block here is really the price. For $ 349 / £ 299 it is more expensive than $ 299 / £ 259 Official Price for A1 2ND Gen – but this model also falls regularly to around £ 180 / $ 200 and it is only at the cheaper price that I generally recommend that people buy it.
At twice the price of JBL Flip 7, it has to work hard to feel worth it. But hey, the last version managed it to me.
